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Appeared on: Friday, December 10, 2004
Philips ED16DVDR external

1. Introduction

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 1

has released
its first external 16X recorder, the ED16DVDR, with support for both DVD+R and
DVD-R writing as well as dual layer.

- Drive Features

Seamless
Link was initially introduced by Acer CM (now BenQ). This technology allows
a CD-RW/DVD+RW drive to automatically monitor the recording status to prevent
buffer under run from occurring.

Seamless Link allows the drive to store the RecEnd address, the point
in the data to which the recording mechanism has progressed, and pause the
recording before a buffer under run occurs. When the buffer is again full,
a Seamless Link-enabled drive locates the RecEnd address and resumes the recording
process. The gap between the stop and restart point is closed, while managing
the recording process precisely and transparently-eliminating under run errors
while maintaining recording accuracy.

The drive does not support Mount
Rainier and it uses the well known RPC II region control, allowing a user
to change the drive's region
at most 5 times. The drive that arrived in our labs was set for Region Code 6. DVD-RAM media is not supported for either reading or
writing. Below are the drive's main specs as given by NeroInfoTool and DVDInfoPro:

Since this is a Mediatek based drive, we used the Kprobe utility in order to remove the RPC lock. As you can see below, we managed to successfully make the drive region free.

The front bezel differs from the ordinary Philips front panels. This one is black with a small indicator light in the middle. The DVD+R DL is placed on the left side and indicates the drive's support for this format while below it there is another logo indicating 16X support. Finally, the eject button is located on the right.

On the rear of the drive itself, there are the analogue and digital outputs (SPDIF), the IDE connection and the power input while on the rear of the case that houses the drive, there are the an audio output, the USB and the ******** AC power connections.

Removing the screws and opening the drive unit's cover voids the warranty.
For reference reasons, we post the following images. You can click on the
mainboard picture for a higher resolution image:

The drive is Mediatek based using the following chipsets.

The following labels are those found on the drive itself and on the case, respectively:

- Installation

The drive was installed as secondary master and under WindowsXP and was recognized
as "PHILIPS ED16DVDR ". The drive arrived with
firmware revision B5S6.

Below is a screenshot of Nero Burning Rom's specs for the drive.

In this review, we will be comparing the drive with the Freecom FX-50 and
the Memorex D², all of them 16X external recorders.

2. Transfer Rate Reading Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 2

Transfer Rate Reading Tests

- CD Format

The Philips ED16DVDR DL supports up to 48X reading speed for the CD format.

The Philips drive confirmed the manufacturer's specifications for 48X CD reading. The Memorex and Philips drives had pretty much the same performance and is probably due to the fact that all three drives use the same chipset.

-DVD Format

With the DVD pressed single layer disc, the end speed of 6.44X was not what we expected. We tried reading the specific media twice just in case, but both times the speed at the end of the task was 6.4X.

With a PTP DVD-ROM disc, the starting point of the two layers is at the inner part of the disc. The drive reads from the beginning of each layer (inner part) progreesing towards the outer part of the disc. The Philips and Memorex drives were the fastest with again the very similar performance.

With an OTP Dual Layer disc, the first layer structure is the same as the first layer on a PTP disc. The drive reads the first layer exactly the same way as PTP discs, and at the same speed. The starting point of the second layer of an OTP disc is located at the outer part of the disc. Once again, the Philips and Memorex discs were faster than the Freecom with almost identical speeds.

With rewriteable media for both formats, the Freecom drive seems to be unbeatable with almost double the reading speed of the other two drives.

The ED16DVDR ripped a full Dual Layer pressed DVD-Video movie at an average speed of 8729kb/sec, only slightly behind the Memorex dirve. The Freecom drive was quite slow in this task.

3. CD Error Correction Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 3

In the following tests we check the drive's behavior when it comes to reading
scratched / defective discs. The test discs we use are the ABEX series from
ALMEDIO.

The drive doesn't support C2 error information.

- ABEX TCD-721R

Errors total

Num: 839208

Errors (Loudness) dB(A)

Num: 49827

Avg:-74.3 dB(A)

Max: -36.0 dB(A)

Error Muting Samples

Num: 2651

Avg: 1.0 Samples

Max: 11 Samples

Skips Samples

Num: 0

Avg: 0.0 Samples

Max: 0 Samples

Total Test Result

77 points (out of 100.0 maximum)

The ED16DVDR drive performed very well in this test, although the total test result of 77 out of 100 can be considered as a little unfair. The total error count was rather low and the maximum
error
loudness level of -36.0dB(A) is below the limit of -35dB(A).
The error muting sample count could have been lower but there were no skipped
samples.

- ABEX TCD-726

Errors total

Num: 0

Errors (Loudness) dB(A)

Num: 0

Avg: -174.0 dB(A)

Max: -174.0 dB(A)

Error Muting Samples

Num: 0

Avg: 0.0 Samples

Max: 0 Samples

Skips Samples

Num: 0

Avg: 0.0 Samples

Max: 0 Samples

Total Test Result

100.0 points (out of 100.0 maximum)

The Philips ED16DVDR
received a perfect score of 100.0 with the Abex TCD-726 test disc.

- CD-Check Audio Test Disc

The CD-Check Test Disc is a very useful tool for evaluating the Sound Reproduction
/ Error correction capabilities of a CD player. The disc offers a signal combination
with disc error patterns to rate the drive's abilities to read music and reproduce
it completely. Five tracks on the disc contain a sequence of progressively
difficult tests. These tracks are referred as Check Level-1 through Check Level-5.

The files are reproduced (played) through a software multimedia player (i.e.
Windows Media Player). Each level is considered as passed, if the tone coming
out from the speakers is smooth, continuous without interruptions, skipping
or looping. The higher the Check Level passed, the more reliable the sound
reproduction of the tested device.

Error Level

1

2

3

4

5

Philips ED16DVDR

5/5

5/5

5/5

0/5

0/5

An average but typical performance for this chipset. We would like it to be better though.

- Conclusion

The Philips ED16DVDR offers rather good CD error correction.

4. DVD Error Correction Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 4

DVD Error Correction
Tests

In the following tests we examine the DVD reading capabilities of the drive with
scratched / defective DVD media. For
the tests we used CDVD Benchmark and Nero CDSpeed. The reference test media
comes from ALMEDIO.

- Single Layer media

ABEX TDR-821

This is a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM with a 4.7GB capacity, and its
surface has an artificial scratch of dimensions varying from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.

The ED16DVDR read the disc successfully but the speed graph is a little messy. The reading speed is low and there are too many speed changes which indicates that the drive can take a long time to read a defective disc of this nature.

ABEX TDR-825

This
is also a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM of 4.7GB capacity. The data
structure of the disc is exactly the same as that of the TDR-821, with the
difference that there are no scratches on it but instead, defective areas of
dimensions
ranging from 0.5 to 1.1 mm.

There are also fingerprints sized between 65 and
75 micrometers.

Again, the same characteristic performance. The disc was read
without reporting errors but with a lot of speed changes.

- Dual Layer media

ABEX TDR-841

This is an 8.5GB dual layer single sided DVD-ROM disc with artificial scratches
of dimensions ranging from 0.4 to 3.0mm, on both layers.

The defective areas once again forced the drive to change speed.

ABEX TDR-845

The disc is a single sided, dual layer DVD-ROM disc of a capacity of 8.5GB.
The only difference between the TDR-845 and the TDR-841 is that the first includes
defective areas and fingerprints.

The dimensions of the defective areas range
from 0.5 to 1.1 mm and the fingerprints are sized from 65 to 75 micro meters.

Ditto. With all the ABEX test discs, the drive did not produce
any errors, but it did exhibit a rather strange behaviour reading at
the full range of speeds between 4X and 5X which produce the yellow strip across
the surface from start to finish, meaning that it wasn't only limited to the
areas with defects.
This could be indicative of a very good if slow reader for defective discs.

ABEX TDV-541

The
TDV-541 is a single sided, dual layer DVD-VIDEO disc, with a capacity of
8.5GB. The disc is based on the TDV-540 series which is designed for inspection
and adjustment of DVD-VIDEO players. The disc checks the layer switch operation
from layer 0 to layer 1 and also includes test pictures and test signals
for
DVD sound files.

The current TDV-541 also checks the error correcting capabilities
of the drive and includes scratches from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.

This is a nice clean output and the Philips drive just ignored the defective
area...

ABEX TDV-545

The
TDV-545 disc is based on the TDV-540 series. It is a single sided, dual layer
DVD-VIDEO disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The TDV-545 includes artificial black
dots on the data surface, sized from 0.4 to 1.0 mm.

5. Protected Disc Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 5

Protected Disc
Tests

- Reading Tests

To create the image of the various protected titles to the hard disk, we
used Alcohol 120% software and the appropriate settings, according to the protection
type of the inserted discs. Below you can see the duration of each process
as well as the transfer rate in each case.

Game Title

Protection Scheme

Duration

Reading speed

PSX "NBA Jam Extreme"

Lybcrypt

3:04min

491 sectors/sec

Serious Sam The Second Encounter v1.07

SafeDisc v.2.60.052

13:20min

419 sectors/sec

VRally II

SecuROM v.2

2:21min

2438 sectors/sec

Philips produced avarage performance with the first two test games while it was fast with ripping the SecuROM protected game.

- Writing Tests

The ED16DVDR DL recorder supports the DAO-RAW writing mode. For checking
the drive's EFM correction status, we used 5 different game titles with different
SafeDisc 2 versions having the latest software patches installed. After making
the images of the various titles onto the hard disk, we burned them (maximum
speed) with Alcohol 120% v1.9.2.1705. Two different discs were created for
each title; one with the "Bypass EFM error" enabled and one more
with the function disabled.

Fifa 2004 - Safe Disc v3.1x

The Sims Superstar - Safe Disc v2.9x

The Sims Unleashed - Safe Disc v2.8x

Serious Sam Second Encounter - Safe Disc v2.51.021

Max Payne - Safe Disc v2.51.020

The table below shows the results of the attempted backups and whether they
worked (game installed / played normally), or not.

Drive

Fifa 2004 SD v3.1x

Sims Superstar SD v2.9x

Sims UnleashedSD v2.8x

Serious Sam-Second Encounter SD v2.50.051

Max PayneSD v2.51.020

EFM OFF

EFM ON

EFM OFF

EFM ON

EFM OFF

EFM ON

EFM OFF

EFM ON

EFM OFF

EFM ON

Toshiba
SD-M1502

No

Yes

Creative CD5233E

Philips ED16DVDR

The above table indicates that the ED16DVDR is not a suitable drive for
copying SafeDisc protected discs. Only some versions of Safedisc protection
could be
backed up.

6. DAE Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 6

DAE
Tests

- Pressed and CDR AudioCD results

The ED16DVDR supports up to 48X CAV DAE speed. The following results
were reported when using Exact Audio Copy.

Again, the Philips and Memorex drives were the fastest, both recording nearly identical speeds.

- Advanced DAE Quality

The ED16DVDR achieved a perfect quality score of 100 in Nero's
CD Speed Advanced DAE test. The drive can read Leadin and Leadout data ( with a limitation on this), CD Text and Subchannel
data. The reported average speed was 33.37X.

- Ripping 90mins AudioCDs

- Ripping 99mins AudioCDs

The drive managed to read and rip successully the 99min test disc while with the 90min the speed was so slow that we had to stop the test.

7. Protected AudioCDs

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 7

Protected AudioCDs

For the test procedure we used three audio discs with different
audio copy protections. The ripping process on all protected Audio
discs was carried out with Exact Audio Copy v0.9beta5.

The tested protected Audio discs were:

Sony's Key2Audio from "Celine Dion - New Day Has Come"

Cactus Data Shield 200 from "Natalie Imbruglia - White Lilies
Island"

The Cactus Data Shield 200 contains artificial errors that are not easily
bypassed by the reader, while the Key2Audio contains a second session,
causing problems for readers when trying to read the Table Of Contents (TOC).

The tested tasks are:

Recognition of the inserted disc (Yes/No).

Ripping all wavs (with EAC's Burst Mode) to the hard disk with the copy&compare
function.

Listening to the produced wavs for any click/skips.

The ED16DVDR DL recognized up to the 13th Audio track of CDS200 disc,

and with the "Retrieve Native TOC" option removed,
it recognized the 13th track.

The Philips ED16DVDR DL managed to rip both
the Key2Audio and CDS200 protected audio discs. The drive rips 100% accurately only the first test disc,
while with the CDS200 the ripping progress took too long and the first track had timing problems.

This
is a "special" CDS200 build, since it doesn't contain any artificial
errors during the ripping process. Most problems occur when trying to write
the ripped wav files, since the produced CD-R disc contains C2 and CU errors!
This "problem" is rumored to be connected to specific chipset weaknesses.

We ripped the disc contents with EAC and burned the wav file produced from
the Cactus Data Shield 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a disc with the latest Nero version
as AudioCD+CD-Text. The burned
media was checked for C1/C2 errors and for BETA/Jitter errors with PlexTools
software using Plextor
PX-712A (firmware v1.05).

There were some cases where C2 errors were reported. The jitter graph however is good.

The C1/C2 error graphs indicate that the drive produced a
100% error free disc. When we extracted all wav files with the Plextor PX-712A
and PlexTools DAE Error Correction 5th Level enabled, no errors were reported.
The drive can backup the disc accurately:

8. CD Recording Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 8

The drive began the task at 21.92X and finished it at 49.41X reporting an average speed of 37.38X, confirming the manufacturer's specifications for 48X CD recording. Click on the
image below for details.

- CD-R Recording Times

For the burning tests, we created an 80min data compilation through
Nero Burning Rom and recorded the data on a 700MB disc. The ED16DVDR finished
the task in 3:10 minutes when writing at 48X. The Freecom and Memorex drives, which both support 48X, were faster with times of 2:59min and 2:47min respectively.

The writing performance was stable, no matter what the
inserted media brand, as our tests
showed. Below is a chart listing the corresponding recording times for various
media.

- Other features

Overburning writing

Up to 99min

CD text reading/writing

Yes

- CD-RW Format

The ED16DVDR supports 16X CLV, 24X P-CAV rewriting speeds
with Ultra Speed Rewritable Media
(US-RW). Below you can see the Nero CD-DVD Speed writing
simulation test with blank 24x US-RW media from Mitsubishi Chemicals. The test started at 16.02X and finished at 24.06X having an average
writing speed of 22.51X

We
also used Nero Burning Rom in order to burn a 24X US-RW data disc from
Mitsubishi Chemicals. The data compilation we burned had a size of 651 MB
and the duration of the recording process was 4:04 minutes.

- CD-RW Mount Rainier Tests

The Philips ED16DVDR DL does not support the Mount Rainier
format.

9. Writing Quality Tests - 3T Jitter Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 9

Writing Quality Tests - 3T Jitter Tests

On this page we present the 3T Pit & Land Jitter graphs
when using
various media burned at the 48X CAV writing speed.

- 3T Pit results

- 3T Land results

The jitter levels are a little high in all cases. 35ns is the official limit. However don't forget that it is about 48X burning...

On the following page we check the C1 and C2 error rates of the same discs, to come up with more specific conclusions.

10. Writing Quality Tests - C1 / C2 Error Measurements

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 10

Writing Quality Tests - C1 / C2 Error Measurements

We measured the C1 / C2 error rate of the recorded discs we burned at the
maximum of 48X supported writing speed. The software used was PleXTools Professional
v2.17, and particularly the built-in Q-Check utility. The reader was the Plextor
PX-712A (firmware v1.05).

BenQ 80min 52X @ 48X

Traxdata 80min 52X @ 48X

SKC 80min 52X @ 48X

Taiyo Yuden 80min 48X @ 48X

Waitec 80min 52X @ 48X

MMore 80min 52X @ 48X

- Summary

The Philips drive produced some C2 errors with specific CD-R media, namely BenQ and Waitec.
Apart from this however, we can generally say that the CD writing quality was good.

- Appendix

Media Label

ID Code

Manufacturer Name

Lead Out TIme

BenQ 52X

97m22s67f

Daxon.

79m59s74f

Traxdata 52X

97m15s17f

Ritek

79:59.70

SKC 52X

97m26s26f

SKC Co., Ltd.

79m59s73f

TY 48X

97m24s 1f

Taiyo Yuden

79m59s72f

Waitec 52X

97m28s26f

Multi Media Masters & Machinery
SA

79m59s74f

MMore 52X

97m17s 6f

Moser Baer India, Ltd.

79:59.74

11. DVD Recording Tests

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 11

DVD Recording Tests

- Writing Performance

The maximum supported speed for DVD+R is 16X (CAV), while for DVD-R 8X (Z-CLV), 4X CLV for DVD±RW
and 2.4X for
DVD+R DL media.

Nero Burning Rom reported speeds are shown below.

By using Nero CD-DVD Speed's "create disc" function,
we are able to see the 8X, 12X and 16X recording strategies being used by
the ED16DVDR recorder for the plus format as well as at 8X for the minus. For the following graphs, we used Mitsubishi Chemicals
media. Click on the images below for the full CDSpeed screenshot.

16X DVD+R Single Layer writing

12X DVD+R Single Layer writing

8X DVD+R Single Layer writing

8X DVD-R Single Layer writing

- Supported media list/Burning Tests

We burned 4315MB of data on various DVD±R, DVD±RW media. We
used the maximum allowed writing speed for each disc. With the current firmware,
only certified 16X media can be burned at this speed, with the exception of Philips media which was allowed up to 12X. ***************We would like to see some 8X media reach this speed...

- Writing Time Results

DVD+R media

The following Nero screenshots are taken after successfully burning with CMC, Traxdata and Mitsubishi media:

DVD-R media

The 8X DVD-R writing times were similar for almost all the burned media.

- Comparison with other drives

As it can been seen from the graphs above, the Philips and Memorex drives posted similar performance, being the fastest in the plus format, while Freecom supports 16X for the minus format.

- DVD Overburning Test

Unfortunately, the drive does not support DVD overburning for both -R and +R media formats, giving the above error message.

- DVD+MRW Tests

This feature is also not supported.

12. Mesia Supported List

Philips
ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 12

Media Supported List

What follows is a comlpete list of the media supported by the Philips writer, according to the B5S6 firmware version on the drive.

13. PlexTools Scans - Page 1

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 13

PlexTools Scans - Page 1

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed,
BURST mode,
with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T,
such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

16X DVD+R Writing Speed

TraxData 16X DVD+R @ 16X

CMC 16X DVD+R @ 16X

Verbatim 16X DVD+R @ 16X

- Summary

The writing quality at 16X is not the best we have seen...

14. PlexTools Scans - Page 2

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 14

PlexTools Scans - Page 2

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed, BURST
mode, with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of
the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

12X DVD+R Writing Speed

Philips 16X DVD+R @ 12X

- Summary

The writing quality should be better.

15. PlexTools Scans - Page 3

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 15

PlexTools Scans - Page 3

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed, BURST
mode, with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of
the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

8X DVD+R Writing Speed

3A 8X DVD+R @ 8X

BeAll 8X DVD+R @ 8X

BenQ 8X DVD+R @ 8X

MKM (Verbatim) 8X DVD+R @ 8X

Taiyo Yuden 8X DVD+R @ 8X

TDK 8X DVD+R @ 8X

- Summary

Taiyo Yuden and TDK media had the best writing quality. Their error levels were low while CDSpeed produced a very smooth graph in the case of TY media.

16. PlexTools Scans - Page 4

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 16

PlexTools Scans - Page 4

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed,
BURST mode,
with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T,
such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

4X DVD+R Writing Speed

Intenso 4X DVD+R @ 4X

MMore 4X DVD+R @ 4X

Optodisc 4X DVD+R @ 4X

SKC 4X DVD+R @ 4X

- Summary

MMore and Intenso media exhibited high writing quality.

17. PlexTools Scans - Page 5

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 17

PlexTools Scans - Page 5

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed, BURST
mode, with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of
the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

8X DVD-R Writing Speed

CMC Magnetics 8X DVD-R @ 8X

Datawrite 8X DVD-R @ 8X

Mitsubishi Chemicals 8X DVD-R @ 8X

Sony 8X DVD-R @ 8X

Taiyo Yuden 8X DVD-R @ 8X

TDK 8X DVD-R @ 8X

Traxdata 8X DVD-R @ 8X

- Summary

In most cases the writing quality is high. CMC, Verbatim, Taiyo Yuden and TDK produced excellent quality.

18. PlexTools Scans - Page 6

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 18

PlexTools Scans - Page 6

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed, BURST
mode, with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of
the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

4X DVD-R Writing Speed

BenQ 4X DVD-R @ 4X

Mam 4X DVD-R @ 4X

MMore 4X DVD-R @ 4X

SKC 4X DVD-R @ 4X

- Summary

The quality is high when recording at 4X, especially with BenQ and Mam media.

19. PlexTools Scans - Page 7

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder- Page 19

PlexTools Scans - Page 7

In order to test the writing quality and reliability of the burned media,
we
used two readers in combination with two software packages:

The LiteON SOHD-167T with patched firmware being able to read DVD5 up to
16X CAV and DVD9 up to 10X CAV. For the transfer rate tests, we used the
latest Nero CDSpeed version.

The Plextor PX-712A with the latest available firmware. For scanning the
disc, we used the latest PlexTools version at 2X CLV reading speed, BURST
mode, with middle accuracy.

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve,
very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times, even when a disc
has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth with
dropoffs. Due to the fact that we oversped the reading capabilities of the
LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of
the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the
burning quality, but as an indication level.

DVD±RW Writing Speed

The LiteON 811S failed to recognize the two burned 4X
DVD-RW media, whereas the LiteON 167T DVD-ROM didn't, so we don't know
if the problem is with the reader or the burned discs...

TraxData 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

Verbatim 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

Optodisc 4X DVD-RW @ 4X

Mitsubishi Chemicals 4X DVD-RW @ 4X

- Summary

The performance with rewritable media could be better. However, the PIE error levels are at acceptable levels.

20. DVD+R DL - Page 1

Philips
ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 20

DVD+R DL - Page 1

The
ED16DVDR is capable of writing Double Layer discs, nearly doubling the capacity
that
can be stored on one single layer DVD disc. For our tests, we used the only two
available DVD+R DL media from Verbatim and CMC Magnetics.

According to Philips, the DL media support list with firmware
B5S6 is:

- Writing Tests

We burned two DVD+R DL discs with DVD-Video content. The
source disc was "Gladiator Movie - Special
Edition" disc1 with a total size of 6.86GB. First, we transferred the
movie to the hard disc with DVD Decrypter in ISO format (single file).
Afterwards, we used
CopyToDVD v3.0.35. After choosing the "GLADIATOR.ISO" image we
selected the Philips ED16DVDR burner.

First we tried with Verbatim Double Layer media. CopyToDVD reported 37:21mins total burning time with 2.4X average writing speed.

Then we repeated the same task, this time with media from CMC Magnetics. CopyToDVD required 37:20mins total burning time with 2.4X average writing speed.

For comparison reasons, we post some burning results from other DL writers, which all burned the same content ("Gladiator Movie - Special Edition" disc1), using the CopyToDVD software:

Drive

Time ( min)

Freecom FX-50

22.40

Samsung TS-H552

37:19

Philips ED16DVDR

37:20

Memorex D² external

37:25

SONY DRU-710A

37:25

LG GSA-4160B

37:59

LiteON SOHW-1633S

38:37

BenQ DW1600A DL

40:16

21. DVD+R DL - Page 2

Philips
ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 21

DVD+R DL - Page 2

- Writing Quality

Verbatim 2.4X DVD+R Double Layer Media

CMC Magnetics 2.4X DVD+R9 Double Layer Media

- Summary

The DL writing quality is good for both media. As for their compatibility, both discs were playable in our standalone players from Philips, Pioneer and NeuNeo, since the drive is set by default to DVD-ROM booktype for DL media.

22. ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 1

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder - Page 22

ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 1

For checking exactly what the Philips ED16DVDR reports, we used three different media, burned with other writers. The three media have been measured with the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements for various reading speeds:

3~8X CAV

2~6X CAV

4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested Philips drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#1st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

#1st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 6X Reading speed

#1st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

For all scaning speeds, the trend lines for both PI sum and PIF of the Philips drive, are very close to those of the SA300. In absolute numbers, the PIF values are almost the same while with PI sum there is a large difference.

23. ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 2

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder - Page 23

ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 2

For checking exactly what the Philips ED16DVDR reports, we used three different media, burned with other writers. The three media have been measured with the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements for various reading speeds:

3~8X CAV

2~6X CAV

4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested Philips drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#2st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

#2st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 6X Reading speed

#2st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

Once again the trend lines of the Philips scans are similar to those of the SA300. This is not something that occurs with the values for both PI sum and PIF...

24. ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 3

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder - Page 24

ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 3

For checking exactly what the Philips ED16DVDR reports, we used three different media, burned with other writers. The three media have been measured with the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements for various reading speeds:

3~8X CAV

2~6X CAV

4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested Philips drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#3st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

#3st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 6X Reading speed

#3st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

The PI sum trend lines, when scanning with the Philips drive, are close to those of the SA300. The PIF are also similar but not so much while the values for PI sum are totaly different.

25. ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 4

Philips ED16DVDR DL Recorder - Page 25

ED16DVDR DL vs. SA300 - Page 4

For checking exactly what the Philips ED16DVDR reports, we used three different media, burned with other recorders. The three media have been measured using the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements at various reading speeds:

3~8X CAV

2~6X CAV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested Philips drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#4th Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

#4th Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

The PIF trend lines and values are very close to the SA300 scans. Those of the PI sum are totaly different.

26. Booktype BitSetting

Philips
ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 26

Booktype BitSetting

The Philips ED16DVDR does not support booktype change, although it is a MediateK based drive. However the defualt booktype for DL media is DVD-ROM.

We tried with different utilities but none of them successfully changed the booktype.

27. Conclusion

Philips
ED16DVDR DL Recorder -
Page 27

Conclusion

The Philips ED16DVDR gave a decent overall performance in our tests.
As a CD reader, it is fast with low seek times and with very good CD error correction.
DVD reading capabilities are also good, with good error correction
which however could be better and with higher speed.

CD game protection presented minor problems for the drive, which only managed to create working backups up to SafeDisk version 2.8. However the ripping performance with all the games we tried was good. The AudioCD protections on the other hand are better handled by the drive. The CDS200 proved to be more difficult than the Key2Audio for the drive, reporting slow ripping speed and timing errors, but only in the first track.

According to the DAE tests, the Philips ED16DVDR was quite fast and succeeded in receiving a perfect
quality score of 100 in Nero's CD Speed Advanced DAE test. The 99min test
audio disc
was read successfully while for the 90min the drive had to slow down a lot.

The Philips drive is a decent CD recorder at 48X which can be considered as excessive as a writing speed. At this speed, the jitter levels
are a little increased in all cases. Bad performance with the one
media brand should not stain the overall picture.

The DVD writing qualitiy is good with the minus format while it needs improvement with the plus.
We believe that a future firmware will fix this as it should also do with rewritable media. For the DL format however, the media was burned quite reliably and it played on our standalone players, as the booktype for this format is set by default to DVD-ROM instead of DVD+R DL. Even so, we would like to be in a position to have the option to change the booktype setting for both DL and SL media.

The price for the external drive at the time of this review was around €125, which is a reasonable price for such a burner.

- The Good

16X recording speed for DVD+R media

Supports DVD+R DL media writing at 2.4X

Supports overburning with CD-R/RW media

Good DVD-R and DVD+R DL writing quality

Good CD writing quality

Good CD error correction

Can be used to measure (scan) DVD±R/RW media

Can read/rip protected Audio discs (CDS200, Key2Audio)

Region lock can easily be removed

- The Bad

Does not support overburning with DVD±R/RW media

Cannot backup copy protected games with versions newer than 2.8 of SafeDisc
protection